The Doobie Brothers are out on the road having recently released their career-spanning documentary, called Let The Music Play - The Story Of The Doobie Brothers. The film, which chronicles the Doobies' long and storied career starting back in 1970 in Northern California, includes new and exclusive interviews with band-members, including co-founding guitarist Pat Simmons. Simmons recalled the band's uneasy days when frontman and guitarist Tom Johnston was sidelined from the group due to stomach ulcers, with the band choosing then-Steely Dan sideman and vocalist Michael McDonald to become the band's frontman and keyboardist.

Pat Simmons told us that during the making of the 1976 Takin' It To The Streets album, the Doobies were far from sure that the band's new sound was going to wash with fans: "Y'know, when Tommy stepped out it was kind of like, 'Oh, where do we go from here? What's, what's going to happen?' And we just figured, hey, we've had a great run here. Let's not over-think it, let's just enjoy it and do the best we can, and make the best records we can. And if it happens, it happens -- we're not compromising our. . . what we're doin', y'know we're still doin' it to the best of our ability. And we knew it was good music, we, y'know, you never know what's gonna be a hit, anyway."